SacBee photog suspended for phony photo

SACRAMENTO, CA - A veteran Sacramento Bee photographer has been suspended for digitally altering a photograph that appeared in last Sunday's newspaper.

The picture, taken by longtime staff photographer Bryan Patrick, showed an egret trying to grab a frog from the beak of another egret.

In Thursday's edition of the Bee, the paper said it later discovered the photograph had been manipulated to enhance the image of the frog.

The Bee said it has suspended Patrick and it offered an apology along with the following explanation:

The Bee's ethics policy strictly forbids such manipulation of documentary photographs. It is considered a violation of our core values, as it misrepresents the accuracy of the event. When we alter a photograph for illustrative purposes, we disclose that at the time of publication.

The Bee regrets the publication of this photograph and apologizes to our readers.